Currently, only 4 percent of Muni’s bus fleet has cameras, which give enforcement officers the ability to ticket scofflaw drivers parked in transit lanes by mailing them a ticket. Current law prohibits the cameras from being used to cite moving violations in a transit lane (only police can do that) or drivers parked in bus stop zones.

This enforcement mechanism will be key as the SFMTA looks to improve and expand its transit-only lane network in the coming years as part of the Transit Effectiveness Project.

Why only buses? Just think if parking control could drive down Valencia Street several times an hour during commute times with a camera mounted car. They could then mail double parking violations instead of having to stop and slap tickets on windshields.

https://twitter.com/peternocturnal peternatural

Modern cars should just print tickets from their dashboard when they detect an infraction.

Guest

Ticketing double parkers and those parked in bus stops should be a priority. But beyond that we need to eliminate vehicles that are parking, or waiting for a vehicle to exit a parking space.

The cameras can only be used to violate people double parking in a transit only lane. I can’t think of any places where there’s a transit only lane on a rail route that is next to a parking lane – they’re all in the center.

Mario Tanev

arraway,

In some places the side lane is so narrow that double-parkers impede on the center lane. For example, at Church St and 29th there is a laundromat whose double-parkers block the J.

Again, they can only be used where there is a double parking IN A TRANSIT ONLY LANE. The inner sunset and church street examples aren’t transit only lanes. But, if there is an example of where there is transit only lane on rail that is adjacent to a parking lane, shout it out!

mikesonn

Double parking, while a crappy thing to do to a bus, is a crime against your fellow citizens when done to an LRV. This “in a transit lane only” clause is BS.

ZKunst

What about the man hours required to review the footage and actually cite the parked cars?

mikesonn

What about the people-hours being lost already to double parked cars? Not only Muni staff but all those people sitting on buses while some jackass parks for “just one second to get a cup of coffee”.

http://gjel.com/blog Miguel@GJEL

Was that a reference to the Fifth Element? But increased traffic fines really are necessary if we want to get people to follow the rules and stop getting in the way of buses.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1610763866 Charles Knott

What about using the camaras to ticket bus drivers who block traffic by not pulling into the bus stops ? Oh, I forgot, the MTA isn’t concerned with improving traffic flow, just fleecing drivers.

mikesonn

Usually there is a reason, like a private auto blocking the bus stop or someone pulls the cord late. But yeah, you keep on thinking there is a war on cars.

Anonymous

What if pulled to the side for emergency vehicles, and one of those buses so happen to be behind you?

Curious Guy

Lets say its street cleaning today 7am-8am the sweeper has already gone by around 7:25am and the meter maid also and then I re-park my car back on the street right after (7:30am) and then a Muni bus comes by can they give me a street cleaning ticket since its a violation cause of no parking within the timeframe